Who is the prophet Yakub in Islam? Yakub, or Israil, is one of the elects of Allah, intended for them to convey to people his revelation and Scripture. He was the son of Ishaq and the grandson of the prophet Ibrahim, therefore he is also called the prophet Ibrahim Ishaq Yakub. There were about a thousand prophets in their family.
In the Qur'an, he is characterized as the possessor of knowledge, a good chosen one, strong and insightful. His life was full of tests, which he confronted with honor. The story of the prophet Yakub will be considered in this article.
An argument in the womb
When Yakub’s father, Ishaq, grew up, he received a prophecy from the Almighty and was sent to the Sham tribe, where he took Rabatik as his wife. She bore him two twin sons - Ays and Yakub. According to some sources, Yakub was born in Syria, according to others - in Palestine.
Rabikat heard that in her womb the sons communicated with each other. At the same time, Ice threatened that he would tear up his mother’s stomach if Yakub was born first, and then killed himself. Yakub suggested his brother to be born earlier than he. And so it happened. Thus, disputes about the championship between the brothers began even before their birth, and Yakub managed to resolve the first of them, losing to Ais.
Love is divided
The love of the parents was divided between the two twins. The mother’s heart lay more with Yakub, the father’s with Ais. Ishaq was aging, and his eyesight was deteriorating, so he was unable to distinguish between his children. When the forces began to leave him, he called Ice to him to ask the Almighty for a barakat (blessing) for him. Ishaq ordered to bring him a ram for the sacrifice.
This conversation was heard by Rabikat and wanted the Barakat from the dua (prayer) to be transmitted not to Aisu, but to Yakub. Mother told Yakubu to come up with the slaughtered ram earlier than Ice. He did so. Father took doubts, and he asked Yakub: "Who are you?" Rabikat confirmed that it was Ice, and urged her husband to pray for him.
Maternal Trick
So that the father mistook one son for another, the mother, showing cunning, dressed Yakub in skins, as Ais had a hairy body. Running a hand over Yakub’s body and feeling the hair, his father said nothing. But at the same time, he thought that the body seemed to belong to Ais, while its smell was to Yakub, and decided that in this matter he should trust Allah.
Taking his son's hand, he offered a sincere prayer to Allah that he would, by his grace, make prophets, messengers and kings of his descendants. When Ice reappeared before his father, Ishaq informed him that he had given the dua to the prophet Yakub. Ice was furious, promising that he would kill his brother. The father began to reassure his pet, saying that a dua was also prepared for him, and called him closer. He asked the Almighty for Ays many children from whom the rulers would come, which happened later.
Yakub Israil
After that, Ice was again angry with Yakub, and Rabikat, frightened that he would kill her favorite, gave the latter advice to move to Najran. Together with his uncle, after the death of his father, Yakub went there and stayed with his mother's relatives.
Heading to Najran, Yakub was en route only at night, and during the day was forced to hide. It is believed that he was the first night traveler. Such a night walk is called “Isra,” therefore Yakub's middle name is Israil. From this name came the name of the Jews, his descendants, indicated in the Qur'an - the children of Israel (Israelites).
Birth of children
For 40 years, Yakub was in the service of relatives. Here he got married. The prophet Yakub had two wives - Laila and Rachel. Both were daughters of his uncle. And also he had two concubines - Balkhu and Zulfu.
All of them bore him children - one daughter and sons. How many sons did the prophet Yakub have? There were twelve in all, of which there were twelve tribes of Israel and many prophets. After the Most High chose Yakub as his prophet, he, taking his family with him, went to Kenan, or Canaan, and settled there. He urged local residents to believe in Allah, to embark on the path of true faith.
Reconciliation with brother
Before leaving, Yakub sent his sons to visit Aisa, greet him, find out how he was doing. Having met his brother's sons, after listening to their story, Ice was very happy, forgetting his insult. Yakub himself followed the children, and the relations of the brothers in their clarity became like a sunny day.
So in the love that the Almighty instilled in their hearts, they lived for many years. After that, Ice settled in Shama, and Canaan left Yakubu. Ice married his cousin, who bore him many children.
Prophet Yakub and Yusuf
Of all the children of Yakub, Yusuf was the most beloved. When Yusuf was 7 years old, he had a dream that he told his father. In a dream, the sun, moon and eleven stars came to him to bow. Yakub, possessing the gift of the interpretation of dreams given to him by Allah, predicted to his son that he would become a prophet and receive many blessings. At the same time, he warned the boy not to tell the brothers about this, since they could harm him out of a feeling of envy.
Yakub's love for Yusuf was not just a blind feeling. She was the result of the manifestation of such qualities of a boy as respect, respect, wisdom. Yusuf's vision made the father’s affection for his son even more. In it, Yakub saw the makings of exclusivity and a prophetic gift. The brothers also noticed this, which eventually made them think. They constantly consulted among themselves, and in the end conceived the evil.
Brothers vs Yusuf
The other sons of the prophet Yakub, envious of Yusuf, decided to kill him. They hoped that this would help them take full control of their father's love and after that become righteous. As a result, Yusuf was thrown into the well by the brothers. Before this, the brothers convinced their father, who expected something bad from them, to let Yusuf go with them.
They took him out of the city and carried out their sentence. Then they stained his brother’s shirt with the blood of animals and, crying, presented it to his father, saying that Yusuf was lifted by a wolf. However, Yakub saw that the shirt was not torn, which means that the wolf had nothing to do with it, and his beloved son is alive. For many years, he waited for the return of Yusuf, constantly shedding tears. From this, his vision first deteriorated, and then blindness occurred.
Sale in slavery
After the brothers threw Yusuf into the well, he sat in it all alone in the darkness of night, frightened by the cries of wild animals. This well was located on the caravan route connecting Palestine and Syria. When a caravan appeared on the way, one of the servants went for water, he found the unfortunate Yusuf.
Heading to Egypt, the owners of the caravan decided to take the boy with them, and upon arriving at the place, they sold it as cheap goods. So a child who was from a very highly respected family, became the slave through the fault of his siblings. It is clear that he had fear and bitterness in his soul. Then an amazing fate awaited him.
Yusuf was sold to one of the most notable people in Egypt - the second after the king - and grew up in his house. Thus, the boy was able to get acquainted closely with the culture and customs of the people of Egypt. The wife of the nobleman could not have children, and took Yusuf to her. When a young man matured, he became very handsome.
Imprisonment
His beautiful appearance began to attract the attention of noble women, and especially the wife of his master, and she began to seduce Yusuf. Although Yusuf lived in the house of the manager of the affairs of the pharaoh, he was still in a slave position, and the nobleman's wife began to blackmail him, threatening false accusations and imprisonment.
When he refused to share the bed with her, she slandered the guy, and he was thrown into prison. The prison was located near the ruler’s house, and, having moved into it, after luxurious palace interiors he found himself in a pit at great depths. His life radically changed, and a new stage began in it. While in prison, Yusuf began to preach faith in the One God, as well as interpret dreams.
Pharaoh's dream
Once Pharaoh had a dream in which seven thin cows ate seven fat ones, and there were also seven ears of green and seven dried up. The ruler was very excited about what he saw in a dream. The interpreters, trying to reassure the ruler, tried to convince him that his vision was only confusion, an incoherent dream, and nothing more. Therefore, you do not need to attach importance to it and just forget it.
Yusuf heard the story of Pharaoh’s dream and explained it as follows, telling the ruler: “For seven years you will be constantly sowing. And what you reap, you need to leave in the ears, with a few exceptions - a small amount that goes into food. After this, seven difficult years will come, which will devour what will be prepared for them, besides the small amount that will be preserved. After this, a year will come, during which heavy rains will pass, and all the fruits will be squeezed out by people. ”
Having heard about this interpretation, the pharaoh called Yusuf to himself. But before leaving the confinement, the prophet Yusuf urged the ruler to ask the women about the reason why he was thrown into prison. Then the wife of the nobleman admitted that she seduced the young man, offering him to choose either a close relationship with her or a prison. Being righteous, Yusuf chose the second. This confirmed the innocence of the prophet.
Meeting with brothers
Having come out of conclusion, Yusuf became a noble man and used all his abilities to preach the true faith. Pharaoh believed Yusuf's prediction, and did as he advised. At the same time, the pharaoh instructed him to manage all the warehouses of Egypt, and he began to implement the advice given to him by himself. Life in Egypt improved, people were saved from starvation.
Unlike Palestine, where Yusuf's father and brothers lived, and where the famine began. Then Yakub decided to send his sons to Egypt to purchase grain. All the Yusuf brothers, except the younger Benjamin, arrived in Egypt, being persecuted by ferocious want. Yusuf recognized them, but did not give a look. He provided them with food and ordered them to bring Binyamin to him in order to give him his share in person.
Death of Yakub
When Yusuf revealed himself to the brothers, and they recognized him, they regretted what had happened and repented. After this, a messenger was sent to their father to bring him and Benjamin to Egypt to Yusuf. At the same time, having learned that his father was blind from the tears that he shed on his son, Yusuf handed him a shirt so that he would put it on his face and regain his eyesight.
When all the relatives gathered around Yusuf, they bowed deeply to him as a sign of great reverence. Earlier, Yusuf had a vision that the whole family would be reunited in the land of Egypt. Soon the prophet Yakub died, bequeathing to his sons to bury him next to his father Ishaq. His will was fulfilled by his beloved son.
He brought the body of Yakub to Palestine, where the prophet was buried in the cave of Al-Khalil. Nearby is the grave of his wife Rachel, who bore him Yusuf. Subsequently, Yusuf himself was buried here . The oral tradition of the prophet Yakub, his life and death, life and death of Yusuf corresponds to the story set out in the Qur'an.
Yakub Mission
Before his death, Yakub, collecting all his sons, asked them: “What will you worship after my departure?” And they answered him: “We will worship the God whom you and your fathers, Ibrahim, Ishmael, Ishaq, worshiped the One God.” Yakub bequeathed to his sons to maintain a prophetic mission, to be humble and comprehend the science of Tawheed.
A tawhid is worship only to Allah, with the conviction of the mind and heart in his uniqueness, essence, inherent actions and attributes, that everything happens according to his will. The science of Tawhid is also called Kalyam, it studies everything connected with the Almighty, indicating that the believer must have the right conviction, otherwise all his actions will be in vain.
It was the comprehension of Tawheed and following him that was the mission of the messengers whom Allah directed in order to save people from error and humiliation, to direct them to faith and the true path. Such was the mission of both the prophet Yakub and his son Yusuf. From the twelve sons came the twelve tribes of Israel and many prophets, such as: Musa, Suleiman, Isa, Dawood. The Islamic prophet Yakub is identified with the biblical prophet Jacob.